Grain-separating device for threshing-machines.



PATENT'BD SEPT. 29, 19037.

` -j II. H. NIGHTINGALE. Y GRAIN SEPARATING DEVICE FOR THRESHING MACHINES.

' APPLICATION FILED APR..14, 1903.

l0 IODEL.

EIIIIIIII n No. 739,908. PATENTED SEPT. 29,A 1903.

H. H. NIGHTINGALE. 4

GRAIN SEPARATING DEVICE FOR THRESHING MACHINES. APPLIoLTIox FILED un. 14, 190s.

Io 1011111.. 2 SHEETS-snm 2.

UNITED STATESv Patented September 29, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY H. NIGHTINGALE, E MOUNDRIDGE, KANSAS, ASSGNOR oF ONE- HALE To PETER E. JANTZ, or MOUNDEIDGE, KANSAS.

GRAIN-SEPARATING DEVICE FOR THRESHING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 739,908, dated September 29, 190.3.Y

Application filed April 14, 1903l Serial No. 152,612. (No model.)

T0 all whom it may con/cern.-

Beit known that LHENRY H. NIGHTINGALE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Mou ndridge, in the county of McPherson and State of Kansas, haveinvented a new and useful Grain-Separating Device for Threshing- Machines, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to grain-separating devices adapted to operate in conjunction with Yan ordinary threshing-cylinder; and it has for its o -bject to provide-a device of this class which shall be of extreme simplicity as regards the construction thereof, which may be run easily and at a comparatively slight eX- penditure of power, and which shall perform the operation of separating the grain from the straw and chaiin a thorough and efficient manner.

With these and other ends in view my inventiou consists of the improved construction, arrangement, and operation of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described, and parl ticularly pointed iu the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved grainsep` arating device. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are perspective views showing the parts or members constituting my improved separating device sep! arated. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic fview showing a threshing-machine equipped with my improved separating device, so as to properly indicate the position of the latter.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are indicated by similar numerals of refer ence.

My improved grain-separating device comprises in its construction an exterior casing 1, which is coniforni and which supports at its upper end a fau-casing 2, having a dischargespout 3. The casing 1 is provided near its lower end with an opening 4, surrounded by a rectangular flange 5, which in operation'is disposed to receive the straw and grain'as the latter comes from `the cylinderof theth'r'esh# ing-machine. The fan-casing 2 has at its upper end an opening 6, spanned by a cross-bar 7, which affords a bearing for the upper end of a shaft 8, whichcarries a driving-pulley 9. This shaftcarries at its lower end a disk 10,

which, as well as the shaft S,is provided with a pluralityv of Spirally-curved agitators l1, which are curved spirally iu an upwarddirec'- tion, so that their tendency will be not only to agitate the materialengaged thereby, but also to feed the same in an upward direction.

The shaft 8 carries near its upper end a plurality of blades l2, constituting the fan, which operates within the casing 2 to produce suction within the latter.

'13 designates the separating cylinder, which is disposed within the casing 1, being suitably spaced from the latter, as willf be clearly seen in.Fig. 2 of the drawings, and

jwhich is provided with a'rectangular mouth 15, alining with the opening 14 of the casing.

The disk 10 ofthe shaftB fits within the lower 1 end of said separating-cylinder,.and lthe upper end of the latter is held in position by means of bolts 15, connecting said separatin g-cylinder with the exterior casing 1 insuch a way as to leave` a continuous opening or space between the separating-cylinder 14 and `the casing 1, permitting the free passage of air from said space between the separatingcylinder andthe exterior casing upwardly into the fan-casing. The latter, which has been described as being supported upon the exterior casing 1, is connected revolubly with the latter by means of a shouldered annular flange 16, bolted to the under side of the fan- Icasing and'engaging a laterally-extending flange 17 at the upper edge of the exterior casing 1.`

Slides, as 18, may be provided to control the inlet of air into the fan-casing through the top opening 6.

A Suitable bearing for the lower end of the shaft 8V is provided at the lower end of the separating-cylinder, which is closed by means of a bottom plate 19, having a step 20, forming a bearing for the ylower end of said shaft, the outer end of which is journaled, as already described, in the cross-bar Supon `Ithe fancasing. It is obvious -that the several parts are to be made of any suitable size and proportions and that the parts may be suitably braced to enable the fan and its related parts to be run at a high rate of speed. It will also be seen that the separating-cylinder is provided with a plurality of slots or openings 21,

IOO

which are preferably elliptical in shape and which are disposed in an inclined position with an upward trend in order to enable the grain to pass freely through the said openings. The lower end of the space between the outer casing and the separating-cylinder is open, permitting the screened grain to drop upon a recleaning device, such as is ordinarily used for separating threshed grain from grain in the chaff, the latter to be returned to the threshing-cylinder to be rethreshed the same as the tailings of an ordinary thresher in common use, while the cleaned grain is conveyed in the ordinary way to a suitable place of deposit. Such recleaning and conveying device has not been illustrated in the accompanying drawingsfor the.

reason that the necessity for its presence will be well understood and such devices are well known and constantly used in connection with all kinds of grain-separating devices.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings hereto annexed, the operation and advantages of my invention will be readily understood. The straw and grain passing from the threshing apparatus enter through the opening 4 and mouth 15 into the innerer separating cylinder. The shaft S within the latter is to be operated at a high rate of speed-say one thousand revolutions per minutethe result being that the fan will create a strong upward suction in the inner cylinder, while at the same time thematerial within the cylinder will be violently agitated and at the saine time fed or forced in an upward direction by means of the spirally-curved agitators 11. By the action of the latter the straw will be loosened and the centrifugal action will cause the heavier particles-that is, the grain-to be thrown in the direction of the perforated separating-cylinder and pass through the inclined openings of the latter into the space between the said perforated cylinder and the outercasing, from which it will drop through the discharge-opening at the bo'ttoin. The remaining contents of the separating-cylinder and the chaff discharged with the grain into the intermediate space between the two cylinders will pass in an upward direction into the eye of the fan and will be discharged through the spout 3 of the fan-casing.

A valuable feature of my invention is the method of connecting the fan-casing with the supporting-casing of the device by means of the flanges 16 17, which coact to form a swiveljoint, whereby the straw may be discharged in any desired direction. The spout 3 of the fan-casing is connected, as will be seen in Fig. 5 of the drawings, with a suitable discharge-flue through which the straw may be conveyed to the place of deposit.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In a device of the class described, a vertically-disposed casing having an inlet near its lower end, a fan-casing supported upon said vertically-disposed casing, a perforated separating cylinder disposed within and spaced from the vertically-disposed casing, connected with the inlet of the fan-casing and having an inlet alining with the inlet of the outer casing, and a suction-fan within the fan-casing.

2. In a device of the class described, an outer casing having an inlet near its lower end, a perforated separating-cylinder disposed within said outer casing, connected securely therewith and having an opening alining with the inlet of the latter, a fan-casing supported upon said outer casing and having an inlet connected with said separating-cylinder and with the space between the latter and the outer casing, a suction-fan within said fan-casing, and means connected with the fan-shaft for agitating the contents of the separating-cylinder.

3. In a device of the class described, an outer casing, a foraminous separating-cylinder within the same connected securely with and spaced therefrom, openings through which material may be fed through the outer casing into the separating-cylinder, a closure at the lowerend of the latter, agitating means within the separatingcylinder, and means for creating suction at the upper end of the latter.

4. In a device of the class described, a vertically-disposed coniform outercasing, a perforated separating-cylinder disposed within and spaced from the latter, anged openings through which material may be fed through the outer casing into the separating-cylinder, a fan-casing supported by the outer casing having a discharge-spout and a valved airinlet, a fan-shaft carrying a fan and a driving-pulley, a closure for the lower end of the separating-cylinder carried by said fan-shaft, and spirally-curved agitators mounted upon said closure and upon the fan-shaft.

5. In a device of the class described, the combination of a coniform vertically-disposed casing having an inlet near its lower end, a fan-casing supported at the upper end of said outer casing and having a discharge-spout and a centrally-disposed air-inlet, a cross-bar spanning the latter and having a bearing, slides disposed to regulate the air-inlet, a separating-cylinder having oblong obliquely-disposed perforations and a flanged inlet alining with that of the outer casing, a shaft having a bearing in the cross-bar ofthe fan-casing, a fan upon said shaft, a circular disk at the lower end of said shaft forming a closure for the lower end of the separating-cylinder, and spirally-curved agitators upon the said disk and upon the fan-shaft.

6. In a device of the class described, an exterior separator-casing, a cylinder revoluble within said casing and having a closed lower end, said casing and cylinder having a grainspace between them, and a fan-casing having swiveled connection with the exterior casing and discharging into the eye of the fan, said IOO IIO

outer casing opening at its upper end into 'casing and a plurality of spiral agitators the fan-casing.

7. In adevioe of the class described, an eX- terior casing, an interior foraininous Cylinder spaced from and connected therewith, an inlet at the lower end of said casing and cylinder, a fan-case sWiveIed upon the upper end of the exterior casing and having a tangential eduotion-spout, a shaft extending through the foraininous cylinder and through the fan- .casing, a fan upon said shaft Within the fanupon said shaft Within the foraminous cylinder.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as x5 my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY H. NIGHTINGALE.

Witnesses:

WM. DYoK, C. H. GOERING. 

